The Paston LettersLife in 1400’s England

*Write the slide or bullet point into your notes when you see an asterisk.*

*Why read 600 year old letters?

• Non-fiction (“real”), primary source• Insight into daily life of the past.• Comparison with current day life:

– Legal system (especially property ownership)– Police, fire, ambulance, military– Communication (internet, phones, twitter, texting, etc.)– Social and economic mobility

Who were the Pastons?• Clement Paston – Granddad of John Paston

– Yeoman (commoner, farmer)– Took advantage of black plague – acquired cheap land– Borrowed money – sent son (William) to law school– Died 1419

Who were the Pastons?• William Paston – Father of John Paston

– Survived plagues– Went to law school– Became a judge– Married Agnes Berry, acquired more land– Lived at Oxnead

Onxnead, Near Norwitch

*Who were the Pastons?• John Paston I and Margaret Paston

– Law school at Cambridge– Became a judge– Married Margaret Mauteby – acquired two manors– Befriended and became lawyer to Sir John Fastolff

• Main beneficiary of Falstoff’s will• Falstoff’s heirs contest will for decades (forcible, legal)• John to London often, defending property claims

–Survived by John eldest, John younger, Margery

Works Cited

• Self, Cameron. "Oxnead." Literary Norfolk. Cameron Self, n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2012.

• Ibeji, Mike. "Paston Family Letters." BBC History. BBC, 17 Feb. 2011. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.bbc.co.uk>.